Vanadium oxide based catalysts have wide industrial applications. V2O5 is a good catalyst for oxidation. It can be used to selectively oxidize hydrocarbons1,2,3 and to oxidize H2S to elemental sulfur.4 It is also used for catalytic oxidation of SO2 to SO3 and for removal of SO2 and NO.5,6,7 
There are few applications of V2O5 in solid oxide fuel cells (SOFC) because of its low melting point (690° C.) and its tendency to be reduced in reducing environments, though some lower temperature SOFC applications have been investigated.8,9 Vanadium oxide has multiple available oxidation states (+2, +3, +4, +5) and the lower oxidation state vanadium oxide compounds have much higher melting points more suitable for SOFC applications. Low oxidation state V-based catalysts have been studied for petroleum desulphurization.10 Vanadium carbide has been reported as an anode catalyst for SOFC.11 Vanadium doping was found to increase the sinterability of LaxCayCrO3 (x+y=1, y>0).12 This material was reported for use as an electrode layer on a solid electrolyte of a SOFC. A composite SOFC anode in which one of the components is a cerium-oxide phase that may be doped with niobium, vanadium, antimony or tantalum to enhance performance has been described.13 
A major advantage of SOFC over low temperature fuel cells is that SOFCs can operate on less expensive fuel. An as yet unrealized potential commercial application of SOFC is for oxidizing of synthesis gas (or syngas) manufactured by steam reforming of hydrocarbons. Syngas is an important and relatively inexpensive energy vector. However, syngas so manufactured contains H2S derived from the sulfur content of the parent hydrocarbon, thus preventing use of the untreated syngas in fuel cells having conventional anodes such as Pt or Ni.14,15 Purification of syngas by removal of H2S16 to a quality appropriate for use with conventional SOFC anode catalysts is expensive, and thus is a barrier to development of syngas SOFC.
The major combustible components of syngas are H2 and CO, and these are oxidized according to the following reactions:H2+½O2→H2O  (1)ΔH=−59.322 kcal,ΔG=−43.766 at 900° C.CO+½O2→CO2  (2)ΔH=−67.322 kcal,ΔG=−43.152 at 900° C.
Several research projects have been directed toward the application of either H2S free syngas or H2S-containing H2 as fuel in SOFC.14,15,16 Other researchers used pure H2S as the fuel gas.17,18 